Tone Thiis Schjetne (19 July 1928 – 2 September 2015) was a Norwegian sculptor. She is represented in the

National Gallery of Norway The National Gallery () is a gallery in Oslo, Norway. Since 2003 it is administratively a part of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design. History It was established in 1842 following a parliamentary decision from 1836. Originally lo ...

and other galleries, contributed several works to the

Nidaros Cathedral Nidaros Cathedral () is a Church of Norway cathedral located in the city of Trondheim in Trøndelag county. It is built over the burial site of Olav II of Norway, King Olav II ( 995–1030, reigned 1015–1028), who became the patron saint of th ...

, and made decorations to

Vadsø Church Vadsø Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Vadsø Municipality in Finnmark county, Norway. It is located in the town of Vadsø. It is the main church for the Vadsø parish which is part of the Varanger prosti (deanery) in th ...

. Among her best known public works is the bronze sculpture ''Go'dagen'' in Oslo,

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

and

Stavanger Stavanger, officially the Stavanger Municipality, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the third largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the ...

Personal life

Schjetne was born in Oslo, Norway to architect

Helge Thiis Helge Thiis (16 August 1897 – 1 August 1972) was a Norway, Norwegian architect. He is most noted for service as head architect at the restoration of Nidaros Cathedral. Background Helge Thiis was born in Trondheim, Norway. He was the son of cur ...

(1897–1972) and painter Greta Swenborg Thiis (1896–1982). Her grandfather was museum director

Jens Thiis Jens Thiis (12 May 1870 – 27 June 1942) was a Norwegian Art history, art historian, conservator and a prominent museum director. He was conservator at the Nordenfjeld Industrial Arts Museum (''Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum'') in Tron ...

(1870–1942). Her aunt

Ragna Thiis Stang Ragna Thiis Stang (15 September 1909 – 29 March 1978) was a Norwegian historian and museum administrator. Biography She was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. She was a daughter of museum director Jens Thiis and his wife Vilhelmine Don ...

(1909–1978) was a historian. Her elder sister Aina is a ceramist, who was married to sculptor Kristofer Leirdal from 1947. Schjetne was married to physician Per Gunnar Schjetne; they settled in

Sandnessjøen Sandnessjøen is a town and the administrative centre of Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Sandnessjøen was granted special trading privileges in the late 1600s, but it did not receive town status until 1999. Sandnessjøen is ...

and had three children.

Career

Schjetne was a student of Kristofer Leirdal at the Trondheim Academy of Fine Art from 1946 to 1947. She trained under

Per Palle Storm Per Palle Storm (1 December 1910 – 6 January 1994) was a Danish-born Norwegian sculptor and professor at the Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts. Biography He was born in Copenhagen and was raised in Argentina. He was the son of Hans Pe ...

at the

Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts The Norwegian National Academy of Arts () was a former Norwegian tertiary institution in Oslo, offering studies in the area of fine art. Along with four other academies, it merged to form the Oslo National Academy of the Arts (, KHiO) in 1996. ...

in 1947-49 and with

Einar Utzon-Frank Aksel (Axel) Einar (Ejnar) Utzon-Frank (30 March 1888 – 15 July 1955) was a Danish sculptor and professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. During his lifetime, he produced many sculptures, some of which stand as public monuments. U ...

at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...

in Copenhagen. She debuted at the Autumn Exhibition (

Høstutstillingen Høstutstillingen or Statens kunstutstilling ( English: ''The Autumn Exhibition'' or ''National Art Exhibition'') is an annual art exhibition in Oslo, Norway. The exhibition is Norway's largest marking of contemporary art and takes place each aut ...

) in Oslo in 1950. For many years she was sculptor at

. She is represented in the

and other galleries. She contributed a sculpture of

Saint Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...

the apostle at

Finnmark Finnmark (; ; ; ; ) is a counties of Norway, county in northern Norway. By land, it borders Troms county to the west, Finland's Lapland (Finland), Lapland region to the south, and Russia's Murmansk Oblast to the east, and by water, the Norweg ...

. Her public works include ''Høylandsfrisen'' (1975) at the

Sandnes Sandnes () is a city and municipality in Rogaland, Norway. It lies immediately south of Stavanger, the 4th largest municipality in Norway, and together the Stavanger/Sandnes area is the third-largest urban area in Norway. The urban city of Sand ...

City Hall, the bronze bust honoring the poet and novelist

Tarjei Vesaas Tarjei Vesaas (20 August 1897 – 15 March 1970) was a Norwegian poet and novelist. Vesaas is widely considered to be one of Norway's greatest writers of the twentieth century and perhaps its most important since World War II. Vesaas' work is c ...

(1986) in Åmot in

Vinje Vinje is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Vest-Telemark which is part of Øvre Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Åmot. Other villages in the muni ...

, and the sculptures ''Klovn'' and ''To klovner'' (1992) at

Grønlands torg Grønlands torg is a square in Grønland, Oslo, Norway. It was previously the largest square in the city. It featured Slaktehuset, Kjøtthallen and Gartnerhallen. The first two were demolished in 1974, while the latter burned down the same year. ...

in Oslo. Her most widely recognized work is the bronze statue ''Go'dagen'' (1980) which appears in

and

. The sculpture was modeled after Anna Kornelia Holm (1885–1962) who had worked as a maid and in retirement was frequently seen at Torvet, Trondheim's market square, where her standard greeting was go' day (''Go'dagen''). Schjetne was awarded the Lorch-Schives legat in 1954 and the Conrad Mohrs legat in 1956. She was awarded the in 2001 and made a Knight 1st Class in the

Order of St Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav. Just be ...

in 2004.

Selected works

*''Go'dagen I'' (Bronze. 1956)

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

*''Berit Olaug'' (Bronze. 1955)

*''Italienerinne'' (Bronze. 1955)

*''Morgenkåpen II'' (Bronze. 1976)

Personal life

Career

Selected works

References

Further reading